Never His Girl (Kings of Cypress Prep #2) - Rachel Jonas Page 0,61
don’t think things are nearly as black and white as we think.
“The other week, when Ricky showed up at the school, he said something that stuck with me,” I reveal. “When I told him I’m trying to fix things, he said the last thing your family needs is another Golden with his hands around their throat.”
Southside’s brow tenses as confusion spreads through her expression.
“Ricky said that?”
“Yeah,” I answer with a nod, “but he left before I could ask what he meant, and I haven’t seen him since.”
She’s deep in thought and I can’t help but wonder if she still thinks he’s innocent in all this. Now that I know the pic was only in his possession, and he seems to know more than anyone else about what’s going on, it’s sending up all kinds of red flags for me.
“He wouldn’t lie,” she repeats, sticking to her guns. “If he says he doesn’t know how the photo got out, he doesn’t know.”
As badly as I want to argue that point, I don’t bother. I’m already in the doghouse as it is. Doesn’t make sense to add to the shit she’s already holding against me.
However, I’m now more motivated than ever to have a one-on-one with Ruiz.
“So, your father,” she says, “you need to talk to him.”
“It’s not that simple. He went out of his way to make me believe you two had a thing, which means—”
“He what?” she screeches. “I thought you said you didn’t mention anything to him.”
“And that was the truth,” I assure her, getting frustrated because she’s frustrated. “He cornered me before regionals, grilling me about the pic Pandora posted of you and me in the pool. At first, he pretended he just wanted to know why I was fucking around with a girl from this side of town, but then he flipped the script, leading me to believe you two were a thing and you were using me to hurt him.”
“Regionals,” she mostly says to herself, but I know why that part of my statement stuck out to her. Because, before that, we’d turned a corner. Only to have Vin open his mouth and fuck everything up.
Including me.
“That’s why you were so cold, so… distant,” she says, peering up.
I’m ashamed to admit it, knowing how naïve I must seem in her eyes, but that’s because she has no idea the evil my father’s capable of.
I only nod, letting her know she isn’t wrong.
“He got inside my head, which is what he does best,” I admit. “But whatever the case, he doesn’t want us together, and he wants me to stay as far away from you as possible.”
Southside’s quiet again while she thinks.
“But why, though?” she asks. “Does he think I know something?”
I shrug, because I have no idea.
“He hasn’t revealed all his cards, but I do think we should be careful,” I add, meeting her gaze when she looks up.
“Now you’re starting to sound like my brother.”
I’m not sure what to make of that.
“I went to visit him last month,” she shares. “He was in pretty bad shape, cuts and bruises all over. He wouldn’t talk to me over the phone, though. Just kept insisting that Ricky convince me to come see him. Then, when I got there, he told me to be careful and to watch my back.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end hearing this, making connections I hadn’t before. Like… maybe the Riley’s do have a Golden with his hands around their throat.
My father’s.
And with what Southside just revealed, I’m starting to wonder if her brother and Vin aren’t connected somehow. One thing’s for sure, I don’t intend to take Hunter’s warning lightly. If he went out of his way to get her there, in person, just to tell her to watch her back, I’m willing to bet that isn’t a bluff.
Chapter 23
BLUE
The feel of a warm hand resting on my thigh startles me awake. But my heart settles when I follow the length of a long, tattooed arm over the edge of my bed. I peer down to where West—in all his sexy-as-sin hotness—fell asleep on my bedroom floor last night.
Well, it was more like morning.
Our conversation carried on for a while, until I dozed, I’m guessing. Not sure at what point he decided he wasn’t leaving, but… I don’t entirely hate waking up to find him here.
We talked about quite a bit, including the fact that Parker was behind my allergic reaction at the Monster Bash. Yeah, he